I’m in the market for a watt meter and power analyzer to take portable with me for my KX3. Since I plan on operating primarily from an LiFePO4 battery pack, I’d like to be able to monitor the voltage, amperage and how many amp-hours have been used. The nicest unit I could find was the Powerwerx DC Inline Watt Meter and Power Analyzer:
The problem is that Powerwerx wants just under $60 for it. That’s a little much for my budget. The Watt’s Up meter from HRO is about $50, but still a little pricey. I found myself looking at the picture for the Powerwerx Watt meter and something looked familiar. The brand on the picture is Turnigy, and the model is 130A. Now, Turnigy is a brand I recognize from RC forums (radio controlled) for car, plane and boat enthusiasts. If you’re looking for efficient, light and portable power, they are the people to go to. I had found my Lithium Iron Phosphate battery on HobbyKing along with a Turnigy charger, so I did a search for the make and model… and this is what I found: Turnigy 130A Watt Meter and Power Analyzer
This is the exact same watt meter as the one sold by Powerwerx, minus the power poles. The Anderson Power Poles are easy to add, so I wasn’t terribly worried about it. But the kicker is the price of $23.95. Less than HALF of what PowerWerx or HRO wants for anything like it. It isn’t in stock in any of HobbyKing’s USA warehouses, so I had to order it from their international warehouse… but international registered air mail was only $5.99. So for $29.94 and a few powerpoles I will have a full feature watt meter and power analyzer.
It might be a week or two for delivery. It may not even arrive in time for my Colorado trip, but I can live without it. I’ll post more information and pictures when it actually arrives.
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